


Home Again

by lowflyingfruit



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-03
Updated: 2020-10-03
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:47:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,040
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26792359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lowflyingfruit/pseuds/lowflyingfruit
Summary: Earth mansion, fire palace, water village, air temple. In the aftermath of the war's end, the Gaang visit each other's homes.At least, they visit the places they once lived in. Home isn't so simple any more.
Comments: 7
Kudos: 124





	Home Again

**Author's Note:**

> Content note: this story deals with canonical child abuse and genocide.

“Well, you have to admit, this _is_ pretty fire-y.”

“Really?” his sister hissed. “That’s all you can think of to describe it?”

Sokka thought about it. “…large?” he offered. The door towered over him, all red and black lacquer. There was some gilding involved. But he refused to be intimidated. He’d seen a lot of things more impressive than a door. Even when he was just comparing vestibules, actually… “The Earth King had a fancier door.”

“This is Zuko’s home, you can’t just _say_ that -“

“No, I think Sokka’s right,” Aang said. Since this was a special late-night adventure out to find snacks, he was airbending his way between columns and various supports to keep the noise down, which meant that he was well over Sokka’s head. He’d taken their only light with him, traitorous firebender that he was. “The Earth King’s door was fancier. If Zuko saw that door, he’d agree too.”

Sokka put his shoulder to the less-fancy door as best he could and shoved. It was still too fancy to budge for a humble Southern Water Tribe peasant. At least one with a still kind of bum leg. “Any chance of some help here, your Avatar-ness?”

“Right away, Sokka!”

Avatar state, phenomenal cosmic powers, Sokka’s still-kind-of-broken foot. This was what the world needed Avatars for. Peace and navigation in unreasonably giant palaces. The construction going on to rebuild after Zuko's duel with his sister only made it worse, with all the randomly blocked hallways and piles of wood lying about. They should make maps for buildings like this, honestly. The door creaked and opened onto -

“Aw, man!”

“It’s a fancy door,” Katara said. “Did you _think_ it would lead to the kitchens? I told you we should have turned left at that last intersection.”

“The kitchens are important! I followed the important-looking stuff.”

“Says the only one of us who can’t cook. If the kitchens are so important -“

“I can cook meat!”

“You stick it over the fire and take it off just before it turns black!”

“That counts as cooking! Hey, if I’ve learned anything about this place, that’s _traditional Fire Nation cuisine._ ” If he coated it in whatever combination of spices that made it burn his mouth so badly. Delicious, but painful.

Katara snorted. “Then tell me, oh master of traditional Fire Nation cuisine, why are we looking for the kitchens, wherever this is, in the middle of the night?”

“Guys, we really might want to keep it down,” Aang said. “It echoes in here, and it’s late. We don’t even know if anyone’s sleeping around here.”

“What is this place, anyway?” Sokka asked. “Katara? Aang?”

Aang brightened the flame in his hand. The soft light fell over a large, open space. A narrow courtyard, actually, the walls so high they blocked out all but a thin rectangle of the night sky. There was seating around the sides, and a long, raised platform in the centre with steps leading up to it on each end, with braziers to either side of the steps. The entire place was tiled in the Fire Nation’s favourite polished, lightly speckled rock, except for the lower halves of the columns, which were clad in metal. “A stage?” Aang said. “Maybe it’s for concerts!”

“The acoustics _are_ good,” Sokka said.

“And you did go to music class in that Fire Nation school,” Katara added.

Behind them, a familiar voice said, “It’s not for concerts.”

They all jumped. Or Sokka and Katara did. Aang just kind of wobbled a bit mid-air. You’d think after a few weeks hanging around with Zuko, they’d all have got used to his just popping up out of nowhere. Toph was the only one who could keep track of him, and Toph was _useless_ because she thought them jumping out of their skins was _funny_.

He’d even managed it in the robes Sokka had come to think of as his second-tier fancy robes. (Matching the second-tier fancy door.) Sokka wasn’t sure how someone could drag around that much fabric and _still_ be quiet. Plus he must have been at a late meeting.

“What’s it for, then?” Aang asked.

Zuko didn’t answer the question. “What are you doing here?” he asked. “I heard you were wandering around, and you’re free to go where you like, here, but -“

Katara looked at the stage, gaze tracking down the whole length of the raised stone. “Oh no,” she said. “It’s for Agni Kai, isn’t it?”

It wasn’t where Zuko and Azula had fought on the day of the Comet, he knew that. If they’d fought in such a small space, they’d have killed each other on the first fireball. But for a non-Comet Agni Kai…Sokka followed Katara’s gaze to the high walls that would block all but the very most errant fireblasts, and to all the not-flammable decorations. Was that a scorch mark on the finish of the stone?

Which meant - yep. This would be the room in Zuko’s house where his dad had held a fireball to his eye.

Zuko looked at the floor and didn’t respond. Fair enough, Sokka wouldn’t want to be in here either, in his position. After figuring that out, _Sokka_ didn’t want to be here, and he wasn’t the one whose face got fried. But Zuko had come looking for them anyway, in spite of that, so he could be a good host. “So, we made a wrong turn on the way to the kitchens,” Sokka said. “You know where they are, though. Come on, I’m starving to death here.”

“He’s not starving,” Katara said, putting one hand on Sokka’s shoulder and one hand on Zuko’s, push-pulling them both right back out the less-fancy door. Aang dropped back to the ground to walk next to them. “He’s just being dramatic.”

“You can just ask the servants if you need anything,” Zuko said. “They’ll show you around, too. Uh, though there are usually more around during the day. You’re all welcome here. I mean it.”

Which was still a bit surreal to Sokka. He, his sister, and the Avatar, were welcome in the Fire Lord’s palace. Which was weird both because palace and because Fire Lord. But then, Sokka thought, as they hustled an unresisting Zuko out of a place that he couldn’t have fond memories of, the Fire Lord might not feel most welcome in his own house either.

“Exploring’s fun,” Aang said brightly. “Sokka wants to draw a map!”

“He just has to learn to draw first,” Katara said.

Sokka graciously ignored that jab, thank you very much. “And for what it’s worth,” Sokka added, “the acoustics in there are really good. You’re missing out if you don’t get some musicians in there from time to time.”

He glanced across Katara’s shoulders at Zuko. Their friend smiled. Just a bit. In Zuko terms, that was pretty much the same thing as a broad grin. “Concerts, huh?” he said. “I’ll think about it.”

Which, in Zuko terms, meant something like _good idea_ and _thank you_.

“Well, come on,” Sokka said, “Concerts later. Midnight snack now. What sort of joint are you running here anyway, Zuko? _Where’s the meat?_ ”

—

Toph’s parents were…polite.

Since becoming Fire Lord, Zuko had been forced to do his share of diplomatic work in the Earth Kingdom. He wasn’t very good at it. But for the sake of the balance and to restore honour to the Fire Nation, Zuko could deal with a few boring dinners. Or a few hostile dinners. He’d had both in the last few weeks. And even if Toph’s father _wasn’t_ likely to become the next governor here, it was Toph’s family.

Lady Beifong said, “Perhaps you would like to take a walk in our gardens, my lord. Toph always did enjoy the hydrangea beds.”

“I’ll be sure to visit them, then,” he replied. He did not allow his eyes to slide next to him, where Toph herself was sitting. He wouldn’t have thought she was much for flowers. Unless they came with lots of muddy roots. He made himself smile.

At least with both Aang and Sokka at the table, conversation didn’t (probably couldn’t) run dry, though they were all feeling the lack of Katara’s polish. She’d gone to the Northern Water Tribe to improve her healing waterbending. Until they’d met Toph here, Sokka had been saying something about a ‘man-only man trip, that _doesn’t_ end with the conquest of a major Earth Kingdom city.’ If there was a joke in that, it wasn’t one Zuko recognised.

Toph herself was quieter than usual. It was unnerving.

Despite Aang’s best efforts, it was a relief when the meal finished and they were all free to find the rooms provided for them. Nice rooms, too. A suite, complete with a little guest parlour. There was still a part of him that associated the Earth Kingdom with sleeping rough.

To his surprise, Toph followed them to the guest rooms. He wasn’t the only one surprised, because Sokka asked, “Don’t you have your own room?”

“Yeah,” Toph said, with one of those broad, toothy grins of hers. “But who cares? Slumber party! I haven’t seen you guys since Ba Sing Se, and who knows when we’ll all catch up again?”

“Three months,” Zuko said. “At the South Pole.” It had taken some rather awkward negotiations, given that he’d personally crashed his ship into Chief Hakoda’s tribe. If he hadn't had Katara and Sokka on his side...

“It’s another diplomatic deal, isn’t it?”

“Always is,” Aang said with a shrug. “You get used to it.”

“ _You_ might,” Toph said, flopping onto a couch upholstered in pale green silk. The Beifongs had put a lot of money into these guest quarters. “South Pole, Ba Sing Se, Fire Nation - the diplomatic stuff is all dullsville to me.”

“Well, no need for diplomatic stuff tonight, we’re all friends here,” Sokka said practically, flopping onto his own couch. “We haven’t had any weird Avatar things happen to us in the last week, but you’ve been here longer, Toph, what’s been up? You got the Earth Rumbles back?”

It took a bit of explaining. Zuko was just getting into Toph’s recount of her career as the Blind Bandit when there was a knock at the door. Aang whisked it open with airbending to reveal one of the servants. “Miss Toph,” the woman said, “Your parents request you attend them before retiring.”

Toph sighed heavily and blew her bangs out of her face. “I knew it,” she muttered. “Guess I better go. Night, guys.”

“What about the slumber party?” Aang asked.

Toph shrugged.

As she headed down the hallway, they could all hear the conversation, if only faintly. _Alone in a room with young men, Toph, it’s inappropriate._

_I’ve been camping out with them for months, how’s that any different,_ they heard Toph protest with a stomp. _They’re my_ friends _._

“Weird,” Aang said.

“Not that weird,” Zuko disagreed. “A lot of rich girls in the Fire Nation have chaperones. Guess the Earth Kingdom’s the same.”

“So if we want a slumber party, we just sneak her out?” Sokka asked.

He looked at Aang. Aang looked at him. “I don’t want to get Toph in trouble with her parents,” Aang said.

“And I’d rather not insult Toph’s parents,” Zuko added. “We are in their house.”

Sometimes, being the representative of the entire Fire Nation wasn’t very fun. He wanted to catch up with Toph privately too. He just couldn’t be invited into Earth Kingdom homes and disrespect his hosts. Even if his hosts were being stupid about some things.

Sokka sat upright. “So how do we do this without offending anyone or making things more difficult for Toph?”

They sat in silence and mulled it over. Zuko turned to look out the window, which hadn’t been shuttered for the night just yet. From what he could see in the bright moonlight bathing the grounds, they _did_ look like nice gardens. He said, “…garden party?”

This time, Aang looked to Sokka, and Sokka looked right back at him. Then they both grinned at him. “Zuko,” Aang said, “That’s the best idea you’ve had all week.”

Zuko frowned. He’d thought the river clean-up plan had been pretty good.

A quiet word to Toph the next morning and the plan was soon in action. Organised by Toph herself, mostly. “This _is_ the best idea you’ve had all week,” she told Zuko. He’d come outside to see if there were any turtleducks in the ornamental pond and found Toph earthbending delicate stone tables in an open area instead. “I get to earthbend at home, and my mother’s _thrilled_ that I want to do something girly. Plus she really wanted you to see the gardens for some reason.”

“I think she’s proud of the hydrangeas.”

“Yeah, well.” A twist of her wrist and a shift of her foot, and a chair formed itself out of a block of stone. Another twist and little chips flaked away to form an impression of the Beifong family’s flying boar in the back of the seat. “I can’t stay here. Too many stupid rules. I love my parents, but…”

“But,” Zuko agreed. He hesitated. Toph was welcome in his house, always, but he couldn’t deny there were a lot of rules there too. And escorts. But. “My uncle would let you stay with him.”

He was sure of that. Uncle Iroh would say that any friend of his nephew’s was welcome in his home, and let them in, and let them stay until they got their feet under them, so to speak. No friend Zuko could send Uncle’s way could possibly be more trouble than Zuko himself had been.

…well, maybe Aang.

A repeated motion, and a second chair formed to match the first. “I wouldn’t want to presume,” Toph said.

“He likes you,” Zuko said. Toph made him laugh. “You can always ask. Even if he doesn’t let you stay, he’ll have some ideas.”

Toph grinned at her next block of stone. “From what I hear, he let you do some pretty crazy things.”

“Probably too many,” Zuko said. “Uncle barely does rules at all. He just lets you know when he thinks you’re being an idiot.”

“I’ll think about it,” Toph said. “Now go away. This area’s supposed to be a surprise for our _honoured guests_. I don’t mind helping my parents show off a bit. Not if I can show off too.”

The plan worked like a charm. Somewhere along the line, he wasn’t sure when, Zuko’s plans started working. Maybe it was practice from all the bad plans? But they sat and talked with Toph long into the afternoon, after everyone else had finished eating and left, and nobody batted an eye because they were all outside in plain view.

And, Zuko was pleased to discover, there _were_ turtleducks in the ornamental pond.

—

When Sokka shouted “Toph!” and leapt forwards to give her a hug, Toph didn’t feel him coming. Stupid shoes.

She’d got used to how cold it could get on Appa’s back. She’d got used to not being able to feel vibrations properly on top of Appa’s back too. But the South Pole was _really_ cold. “Sorry, Toph,” Katara said, when they were still a day’s flight away. “If you don’t wear something over your feet, you’re going to lose your toes.”

The shoes she’d been given were warm, and they did their job of protecting her feet, but everything was so muffled and fuzzy she couldn’t really tell what was going on around her. When Sokka hug-tackled her, she fell right over. The greatest earthbender in the world, knocked over, by _Sokka_.

“Sokka!” Katara scolded him.

“Sorry,” Sokka said, and helped her up. Snow also sucked, Toph decided. It was all grainy like sand, but she couldn’t bend it, and then it melted and trickled into her clothes. Ugh. And it was cold. She'd known the trip would be difficult, but she'd never let that stop her before. She wasn't going to let it stop her now. “It’s just great to see you.”

“I’d say the same if I could see you,” Toph said. “Can we go somewhere warm now?”

Sokka took her hand again. She didn’t mind it from Sokka, but being helped around all the time was going to get real old, real quick.

She hadn’t counted on Sokka. “Hey, Katara, Aang,” he said. “Can you firm up this snow for Toph? I think it’s messing with her feet.”

Someone’s clothes rustled, Katara breathed in deeply from the same general area, and there was a _whoomph_ sound as the snow in a circle around them just…packed down. Which did make it a little easier to feel things, even with the shoes. On the hard surface, she could feel vibrations a little even though it wasn’t good solid bendable earth, and she could hear impacts more clearly. Straining her senses, she could get the general idea of where Sokka and Katara were. Twinkletoes, not so much. “Where are we going?” Katara asked. 

“The big house,” Sokka said. “We were denied a slumber party last time, but we will not be denied again!”

Another rustle of clothes, another _whoomph_. Toph could hear more footsteps a little ways down the path Katara had made.

“It’s really changed here,” Aang said from somewhere ahead. She could barely feel his light steps.

“No kidding,” Katara said. She didn’t sound as enthusiastic as Aang. “I was only gone a few weeks this time.”

Sokka shrugged. That she could feel, given how close he was standing to her. “With the war over and all the Northern waterbenders free to help with building, surprisingly enough, it’s a lot easier to get things built. Pakku’s not an architect or anything, but he knows a few tricks, he’s already written -“

He went on like that for a while as they walked back to whatever house it was they were going to. All Toph could feel were big lumps of ice. The Water Tribe didn’t live in those, did they? Where was the rock? Even in the Fire Nation they at least used good solid wood. She could hear voices from inside some of the ice lumps.

But when Sokka ushered her to and inside a particularly large ice lump, Toph put one foot down and said, “Hey!”

“Like it? I got Haru to make me a stack of tiles when I stopped by his village on my way back.”

Toph kicked her shoes off. It was warm enough inside for that. Who would have thought? Aang said, “And these are all woven coverings.” With her feet on proper stone, Toph could feel him bow to Sokka. “Thanks, Sokka.”

“They’re not as warm as furs, but that’s not an issue if you’re inviting firebenders. Besides, it’s not a good slumber party unless everyone’s comfortable,” Sokka said with a dismissive wave. “Now we just need Suki and Zuko to show up!”

It was even better than camping out had been, because they didn’t have to worry about being ambushed. Even if Water Tribe food was a little weird.

They fell asleep late. Very late. According to the others, at this time of year it was dark almost all the time. Didn’t make much difference to Toph, though Katara had warned her that if she wasn’t careful when the sun _was_ out she’d get sunburn as bad as she did in the desert or on long flights. So when Toph woke up, she had no idea when it was. Not even when she put her shoes back on and tentatively felt her way outside the door.

“Toph?” a vague non-snowy lump outside said.

“Katara? What time is it?”

“Still early,” Katara said. “Are you okay?”

“I need to go to the bathroom,” she said. “I - I don’t know if I can find it again.”

She hated being helpless. Especially about this like this. Even though her friends would help her without hesitation or questions and never, ever mention it.

“I’ll make a path for you,” Katara said. The whoosh of waterbending, the crackle of water compressing. Then Katara took Toph’s shoulders and gently guided her to the path. “There you go.”

Toph edged her way along Katara’s path, there and back. It was the closest snow could get to stone, but it still didn’t feel right. It was hard to trust her own footing. When she got back to the door, Katara was still waterbending. “I’m making more paths,” Katara explained. “So you can find your way to the meeting hall yourself, and back here, and to the main entrance.” Her voice wavered on the words ‘meeting hall’.

“How am I going to tell them apart, then?” Toph asked. She held up one booted foot. “I can’t exactly feel much. Even if this was stone I couldn’t feel much in these.”

Katara stopped waterbending and tapped a toe below her. Toph came to join her. It was still a bunch of packed snow, but it was kind of…pebbled. “Can you feel that? That’s to the entrance.” Another tap on another path, the ‘pebbles’ on it spaced differently. “That’s to the hall. We’ll have to clear them up if we get more snow, and just because they’ll wear down a bit, but hopefully it helps.”

“What’s the big deal about the hall?” Toph asked. “You sound funny when you mention it.”

It was a little while before Katara answered. ”We didn’t have one when I left for the North Pole,” she said. “Left for the second time, that is. Everything’s changing so fast…this isn’t the place I grew up in anymore.”

Toph poked at the packed snow Katara had made for her. The South Pole was just so _different_ , it was hard to know what it was _like_. It was all snow and hollow lumps of ice, none of which she could make out right. “Is that a bad thing?” she asked.

“No, no,” Katara said. “We used to worry about everything here. Whether the Fire Nation would raid, whether the blizzards would knock over our tents, whether we’d have enough to eat. I like that that isn’t a problem any more. I just - don’t know how I fit into here any more. Or how I’m going to in the future, especially if -“

Right, right, Aang. There was no way Aang could settle down permanently for a while, much less somewhere as far away from everything else as the South Pole. If Katara was going to stay with Aang, the South Pole would be going on without her. Fast. If Sokka had anything to say about it, which from the sounds of it, he did.

“I’m just not sure I can keep up,” Katara finished.

“You just installed a bunch of paths for me so I could get around,” Toph said. “Before all this, if I’d visited somehow, I probably would have been stuck inside all the time because nobody could do that for a blind earthbender. You just changed your home so I can get around by myself. Before breakfast! If anything, the South Pole’s going to have to keep up with _you_ , Katara.”

“Well...I hope so…”

“You got this,” Toph said firmly.

Katara breathed in as she swept her arms up, and breathed out as she swept her arms down. The path behind Toph crackled a bit. When Toph walked over, it had a third pattern of little bumps. Still not as good as stone, but way better than asking for help all the time.

“See?” Toph asked. “Now, what do you have for breakfast around here?”

“You’re as bad as Sokka sometimes,” Katara said. Nothing like _Toph, are you sure you’re not eating too much?_ from her mother. Just affection. “Come on. I’ll make you a path to the food too.”

—

It was Suki who asked “where are we going?” first, when Aang gathered them all in front of Appa.

Aang had already discussed it with Zuko - he had to, nobody could just wander off with the Fire Lord for days on end, which sounded absolutely no fun at all - and Katara. Sokka probably had some idea, he knew Aang well enough for that, and he’d been there that first time. But that left Toph and Suki.

“The Southern Air Temple,” Aang said. Standing next to him, Katara squeezed his hand. “There are some things I want to do there. I’d like you all to come with me.”

Just the six of them. Together. His new family. The three who he hadn’t already brought it up with looked at each other. Then Sokka slung his bag atop Appa’s saddle. “Of course I’ll come,” he said.

“Me too,” Toph said.

“Me as well,” said Suki.

“Then it’s settled!” Aang said brightly, though there was a lump in his throat. Katara squeezed harder. “The Southern Air Temple it is! We should only be a few days.”

Katara said, “I think I speak for all of us when I say we can make the time.”

It was a solemn flight there from the South Pole, and it only got even more sombre when the temple’s spires at last came into view. He landed Appa in the central courtyard.

When he’d last been here, more than a year ago, it had been winter. Now it was well into spring again. The temple looked better for it. There were leaves on the trees. Flowers. But he could see the cracks in some of the foundations more clearly too. In some places, he could see pale, weathered sticks poking up from the dirt that weren’t sticks at all.

His friends waited for him to speak first. Aang said, “So, like I said, there are a few things I want to do here.”

“A funeral?” Suki asked gently.

“That’s one of them,” Aang said. The lump in his throat was back. “But I also want to tidy up a bit. Stop the temple falling apart any more.”

“What do we need to do to help you with the funeral?” Katara asked.

“They’ve kind of had it already,” Aang said. “Their bodies have gone back to the animals and the earth here. What I want to do is lay out as many bones as we can find and say goodbye properly. Just in case there are any spirits still here who need it.”

They all nodded grimly. But that wouldn’t do. ”It’s important that we act normal,” Aang continued. He needed them to understand this. “The more normal we act, the more we can reassure them. We have to _show_ them it’s okay. Can you all do that for me?”

They looked at each other again. Aang was starting to wonder if he was doing this all wrong, or if they were just worried about him. It could be both.

But at last Toph smashed her fists together. “I can manage repairing a few buildings,” she said. “Easy peasy. Lots of good rock here. The airbenders who built this place definitely got some help from earthbenders. I’ll start at the foundations and work my way up.” With a kick of her feet, she dropped through the stone of the courtyard and out of sight, sealing the hole as she went.

“You know me, I’m always up for reassuring spirits,” Sokka said. “If I have to deal with spirits, I’d much rather they were reassured than not. Come on, Suki, we’ll start with that spire over there.”

“I’ll follow your lead, Aang,” Suki said, as Sokka half-dragged her off.

“Just keep doing what you’re doing!” Aang called after them.

Zuko watched them go, then turned to Aang. “Are you _sure_ about this, Aang?” he asked. “I don’t want to disrespect your people. I can wait on the shore and set up camp.”

“I’m sure,” Aang said.

“And the funeral? If you change your mind -”

“I’m sure. I won’t change my mind. Having you there will help, not hurt.”

Zuko didn’t look entirely convinced, but he headed in the opposite direction to Sokka and Suki. It wasn’t like he was going to run off because it was hard.

That left just him and Katara. “Do you want me to stay with you?” she asked.

“Not at the moment,” he said.

“Okay,” she said. “I’ll be with Zuko if you need me.”

Then it was just Aang. And Momo, when the lemur flew over to perch on his shoulder. Momo’s slight, warm weight was comforting, even if Aang didn’t think he could do this with another person right now. Momo was from the Southern Air Temple too. He knew the same halls and towers than Aang did, even if he knew them differently.

He took the central path to the main area of the temple and tried to act normal.

“You’ve seen this in summer, haven’t you, Momo? I bet you loved it. All those peach-apple trees. Nowhere grows them sweeter. Look, you can see some of the early fruit growing already. Maybe I should come back with some, I dunno, are they called arborists? and see if we can get more planted somewhere people can enjoy them. They’re too good not to share.

“This was the best ramp to hold races down, too. There was one in the eastern spire where you could go faster, but it was too narrow for a good race. You think Katara might race me if we clear up some of the moss first? Not a proper airbending race, I know, but racing waterbenders is good as well. I might be a bit biased though. Guess I’ll just have to test it out with all my friends!

“Oh, hey, the classrooms. I mean, I don’t _really_ miss school, but I kind of miss school. Nice not having to worry about anything more than my math homework. Still better than washing dishes.”

There were both more and less bones than he expected, after a hundred years. He didn’t know how many bones were in a human body, much less a bison body, but it had to be a lot, if there were still so many after all this time. He gathered all he found and brought them to the courtyard. The others had been doing the same, just like he’d asked.

There was no telling whose bones were whose. Maybe that skull belonged to old Monk Tashi, who made all the orange and yellow dye for the temple. Maybe the leg bone there was Monk Norbu’s, who’d only been thirty but acted like the oldest and grumpiest of the monks. Maybe those smaller cracked bones belonged to his friend Dawa, the best airball player in the south.

He’d never know. They were all a layer of bones in the courtyard, and maybe restless spirits.

The next day, his friends kept checking up on him. Katara stayed with him. For once, Aang could hear Zuko coming and going. Toph came up around lunchtime to report that while she wouldn’t have time to fix everything, nothing big would be falling down any time soon. The Southern Air Temple would stand.

But the best news came from Sokka and Suki, who pelted up to him, breathing hard, just before Aang was going to stop for the day.

“What is it, guys?” Aang asked.

“You haven’t been back here since last year, right?” Sokka said.

“No,” Aang said, confused at the huge smile on Sokka’s face. Suki was grinning too. “Why?”

“We were searching one of the far buildings,” Suki said. “The one with the terraces and all the radish-turnips. We found dung.”

“ _Bison_ dung,” Sokka said. “A few weeks old, from the looks of it. There were _sky bison_ here! They seem to like new radish-turnip greens.”

Aang’s heart felt too big for his chest. “Show me,” he said.

They were right. It was definitely bison dung. He had to take Sokka and Suki at their word that it was only a few weeks old. Appa lowed loudly as soon as he came near and then took off. “Let me know how it goes!” Aang called. Then he had to wipe his eyes. A whole bunch.

“You’re not going with him?” Suki asked.

He shook his head. “Not now,” he said. “Later. They might be a bit scared of humans. Besides, this means a lot to Appa. I don’t want to get in the way.” There would be time afterwards. Plenty of time.

At the end of the third day, Aang said, “We’ve been over the entire temple as best we can, haven’t we?” His friends nodded their agreement. “Then I’m ready. Tomorrow morning.”

Aang climbed up to the courtyard where they’d laid out his people’s remains before dawn. He’d brought a lot of incense. He placed it all, ready to light once the others arrived.

Zuko was next, a few minutes after dawn. Aang hadn’t seen him when he’d left camp, but that had to have been because Zuko was getting dressed. When he’d first asked Aang if it was all right for him to be here for this, and when Aang had said yes, he’d asked whether to come as Aang’s friend or as the Fire Lord.

The Fire Lord, Aang had said. For him, personally, he’d rather have his friend Zuko. But his people - if there were any still lingering here, still suffering, he thought they might like to see that the Fire Nation was sorry. And maybe the Fire Nation wasn’t sorry, not yet, but it still meant something that Sozin’s great-grandson was here on its behalf, in formal white mourning robes.

Zuko bowed low to the courtyard, bowed low to Aang, and then knelt behind and to one side of him. It probably meant something. Nobody did formal quite like the Fire Nation.

Katara, Sokka, Suki and Toph weren’t far behind Zuko. Without a word, they knelt around him too. Aang wiped his eyes yet again, breathed out, and lit all the incense at once. Another thing he thought his people might want to see. Something he’d had to learn again. Firebending wasn’t evil.

He should say something. There were proper mantras for this, but he couldn’t remember them well enough to say them, and he didn't want to mess it up. He’d only been to a few funerals before. He’d never expected he’d have to conduct one, not for years and years.

He’d find out, he vowed. Whatever was left of the Air Nomads, _his culture_ , he’d try and find it. For now, he just had to trust that the spirits of the Air Nomads knew how he felt and saw what he was trying to do.

So he stayed silent and watched the smoke rise to the sky, until all the incense burned down.

They walked back down to their camp from the courtyard together. It didn’t seem like any of them felt like leaving quite yet. Though Appa had come back from wherever he'd been searching for the sky bison, he'd flown off again. Aang felt a bit like a wrung-out sponge.

“Aang,” Katara said. “Would you mind Sokka and I contributing a bit of Water Tribe tradition?”

“Not at all,” Aang said.

She brought out a bottle from her bag, followed by a bunch of little cakes. Behind her, Sokka was building up the fire. “We’d normally do this before we return our dead to the ocean,” she said, “but we bring out some good food and drink and tell stories about the fun times we had as well. Does that part sound like something that might help you?”

Aang thought about airball tournaments and racing his friends. That time when he was supposed to be meditating peacefully with the elder monks but a sudden squall nearly blew them all into the ocean. The trio of sky bison calves who broke into his classroom, just to see what everyone was doing there, until they got too big for the windows. Making cakes with Gyatso. “I have _lots_ of fun stories,” he said.

“I bet you do,” Katara replied with a smile.

It wasn’t the same. It never would be. But, Aang thought, the Air Nomads would want to hear his new family laughing, too.

**Author's Note:**

> <3 Thanks for reading!


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